twenty-four

Today I turn 24.

It's amazing to see what these past 365 days have brought me . I have already accomplished so much that I never thought imaginable; became full time employed at my work, took Brett to meet my family in Scotland, got an iPhone, went to my first basketball game, went for an all day hike through Yosemite, visited Chicago and Indiana. But what am I telling you this for? You've been sitting along side me while I blog about it all, right? :]

Even though I am working for a bit today, I will be heading off to Greece in just a few days with Brett for two whole weeks! I am beyond excited for our adventure together and to have some quality time away from everything and just enjoying all that the islands have to offer.

X x

first day of summer

Hooray! Summer has finally arrived, well says my calendar anyway. And in honor of such a wonderful occasion I have created a little mini list of everything that I want to do this summer. I would love to hear your summer list or if any of my activities line up with yours.

Cheers to a wonderful, warm and bright summer 2012!

X x

and that's all my iPhone has to say about that

This week was pretty busy, work wise. I was at the Santa Clara Convention Center with other co-workers representing our company and showing off our new products at our booth. It can be nice to get out of the office for a few days and experience a lot of face to face communication with people, but then again.. those long hours took a lot out of me and I am exhausted now. Really looking forward to this weekend and hopefully getting to play in the sunshine! {with a margarita or two for cinco de mayo :)! }

a little pop of color!

little candies at our booth to give away

Happy Friday & weekend to you all!

X x

Operation: Closet Overhaul

Operation Closet Overhaul has begun! Let me tell you, I have been talking about doing this for months, and this project has been looming over my head for long enough. These past couple weeks I have been slowly going through everything in my room and closet and really purging through everything. This weekend I finally got it sorted out into designated bags with a destination in mind.

• Princess Project
• Used Clothing Store
• Craigslist
• Potential Garage Sale
• Donate

 

I have some clothes that are in great shape that have either been worn once or twice, even some still have the tags on them and just got lost in the depths of my closet. Those clothes I am taking to some local recycled stores and trying to sell them back and earn a little cash. Other clothes I have are still in good shape but I don't think I will be able to sell them back, those are in a different bag that I am going to try to donate to a local shelter for people in need. I also had a couple of old dresses from high school that I wore to Prom or Homecoming - those dresses I know I will not use again. I heard about the Princes Project so I googled it & found the nearest drop off station and turned in my three dresses. Hopefully some girls will find them and look stunning at Prom! :)

I even found a bunch of change lying around everywhere... so I took it to a CoinStar machine and 2 minutes later I had a $35 gift card to Amazon.... oh the possibilities are endless for what I can get!  :)

I read lots of people's blogs and comments, especially from Lauren Conrad's site as she gives advice on continual closet organizing, so thanks everyone for the help to get this started.

X x

st. patrick's day fun

• sleeping in and staying warm under the covers for as long as possible
• searching for somewhere that has green bagels remotely near us {no such luck}
• driving from fast food chain to fast food chain trying to get their "green" spirited menu items, {free french fries w/ green ketchup @ burger king, shamrock shake @ mcdonalds!}
• sending a little st. patty's day cheer
• the weather was in true irish fashion, {cold, gloomy, rain here & there}
• nothing that a little baileys & hot chocolate can't fix - yummm!
• eating some scrumptious cupcakes with leprechaun decor

What were some of your st. patrick's day activities?

X x

"Wear Your Letters on Your Heart"

Good Morning My Little Cookie Jar readers! Today is a special Monday because it is International Badge Day for all Panhellenic Sororities. The NPC (National Panhellenic Conference) is a council of women from 26 nationally recognized sororities who help govern and support these sororities. Today millions of women from all sororities come together and wear their badges proudly. Even though your collegiate years in college are short, your membership in the sorority is for a lifetime and today I am proudly wearing my Alpha Phi and Order of Omega pins at work.

Q: When is International Badge Day this year?
A: Monday, March 5, 2012.

Q: When did International Badge Day start?
A: The celebration to honor sisterhood was started in 1997 by the National Panhellenic Conference. The date is generally recognized during March, which is also National Women’s History Month and set aside for International Women’s Day. The inaugural campaign was titled: “It’s as Simple as Wearing your Pin … With Pride.”

Q: Who started this tradition?
A: The creation of this event was the idea of a sorority woman. In the spring 1996 issue of Alpha Sigma Alpha’s “The Phoenix,” Nora M. Ten Broeck wrote an article titled: “A Simple Solution — Wear Your Membership Badge Today.” The article described her personal experience of wearing her sorority pin to work one day.

National Panhellenic Conference
Alpha Phi International Fraternity

X x

Happy... Birthday / Founder's Day / March 1st

Wow, who knew March 1st could be packed with so much happening! Between a very important birthday, Founder's Day for a very important fraternity and starting to make things festive for St. Patrick's day.



Sunday evening, March 1st 1868.....

Today is Pi Kappa Alpha Fraternity Founder's Day. These are some of the most hardworking, dedicated, trustworthy and overall fantastic men I know. They definitely deserve to have a very happy Founder's Day and I hope each chapter is doing something special, especially the ZO!

Today is also not only my Alpha Phi sister, but my pledge sister and former roommate in college. I definitely went through a lot with this amazing girl right here.. from sharing the same major and classes to our crazy adventures, heartbreaks, celebrations and love. {and yes it did rain on my college graduation in Los Angeles in May}

And lastly... I found these adorable print out's.. just like the one's I did for Valentine's Day from the always amazing website Pizzazzerie. I have printed some out as before put them around the office and home for some cheer. Thanks for finding / creating these adorable pictures and words to share!

X x

be healthy. be strong.

I have been feeling extremely sluggish and have a lack of motivation since we welcomed 2012. Has anyone else been feeling a little like this lately? I have also been having some internal problems with my health and my body just seems less than pleased with anything I try to give it {might have something do with my recent spike in quick fast food meals} but regardless something needs to be done!

I am usually very skeptical about any detox for purchase or even those infamous lemon, cayenne pepper, and maple syrup concoctions . I usually end up getting my own fruits and veggies and protein powder and make my own creations. When I heard about this one and the great reviews it has been getting I was intrigued. After reading through their entire website and testimonials, I was sold and purchased my very own 3 day kit. I somehow even intrigued Brett enough and he purchased his own 3 day kit as well!

I was particularly interested because it is located and made from Palo Alto CA - which is right here in the bay area. Not only did the package arrive in 2 days but I knew exactly where it was coming from!

Here is the deal, they provide three smoothies a day that you drink for each meal. You can choose either the 3-day or 6-day program. You are also encouraged to eat any raw veggies you can through the day if you are feeling hungry still. The smoothies are gluten free and vegan  with a full serving of real fruit, fiber, 15g soy lean protein, 2 billion probiotic cultures, and daily vitamins in every pouch.

Head over to their website - and give it a try :) Leave a comment below if you have tried this before and let me know what your experience was like or you are interested and want to learn more.

 X x

my little cookie jar turns one!

Hello readers! Today is a very special day, because today My Little Cookie Jar turns one! My how time flies and how many things have changed since I sat here 365 days ago not knowing where to start. When I started this blog I was a recent college graduate with not much work experience looking to land that first solid job. This blog has become an outlet for my creativity as well as my own little "diary" where I can share with you my activities and adventures I have embarked on as I am flying through my 20's trying to conquer this funny little place we call earth.

I have picked my top 3 posts from this past year as my favorites ones I did - what were your fav's?
My First Snow Day
Gilroy Garlic Festival
Mario's Great Adventure



I would also like to take this time to say thank you to all you lovely readers who find me through twitter, facebook, bloglovin or simply check back lookingfor an update. My Little Cookie Jar wouldn't be what it is today without my lovely audience. Today is a day for reflection and response, as I look back at my previous posts and wonder where this blog is headed for 2012. I would like to ask you my fabulous readers what your 1) likes and dislikes are, 2) what you want to see more or less of or 3) any other general ideas or directions you would like to see this blog take!

Please leave comments below I would really love to get your input and build a connection with you.

And remember to keep in touch with me:

Google Friend Connect

BlogLovin

or feel free to send me an e-mail, i adore them!

susanscookiejar{at}gmail{dot}com

X x

the first of 2012

via instagram

Sunday - January 1st, 2012 could not have been a more beautiful day in Monterey. The sun was proudly shining, the waves were gentle, there was not a cloud to be seen and the air was calm. Brett and I went down to breakfast at 9am because we each had an appointment for a massage at 10. We ate a light breakfast because it would be terrible if we were full or uncomfortable as we were getting our massage. We walked across to the spa and checked in. There were separate beautiful locker rooms for men & women with a steam room, showers, bathrooms and an amazing getting ready area. But I will get to that after our massage. We changed into our robes and went to sit in the relaxation room where we were waiting with a few others to be called. Then began our 50 minutes of bliss as we each got our full body massages. I can honestly say it was one of the best I have ever had, and I have been to about 5 or 6 different places between Tahoe and Los Angeles, so that is how good it is my friends. Afterwards we were feeling completely at ease and relaxed. We both went into the hot tub together to talk about our massages and enjoy a little sunshine. Then we headed back to the lockers and agreed on a time to meet back out again. { I was late, of course} After enjoying their steamroom and shower with three different shower heads it was hard to leave. They had two huge counter top's with all the entities you could need: hair dryer, straightener, razors, q-tips, lotion, etc! The spa is called Spa on the Plaza and if you are ever in Monterey I would completely recommend this to anyone interested in any type of service.

We checked out of our hotel and got our "check out cookies" {this is a picture of our check in cookies, possibly the best cookies ever, so we had to ask for more!} then we slowly walked the mile long  path from the wharf to cannery row on this path and stopped to take some pictures along the way. After doing a little shopping and wandering around Brett's mom and Aunt decided to drive down and join us for dinner and we ate at a delicious seafood restaurant located right above the water with an amazing window view.

As it got darker and the day turned into night we got back in the car and drove home, reflecting on what an amazing weekend it was and how ready we are to take one 2012. It is pretty crazy to think how much has changed not only in my life but Brett's life as well just 365 days ago. I am not one to make many resolutions because I kind of come up with goals as the year goes along but there is one resolution I will share with you that I want to incorporate into all aspects of my life. It is fairly simple so you can take it how you like and use it as you see fit.

Fight less,  love more

X x

new years' eve

After our fabulous visit to the Monterey Bay Aquarium {read about it here} we went to our hotel to check in. The location was perfect! It was right between the downtown area and the wharf. The party that we were going to was in our hotel so I had previously made reservations at one of Brett's favorite restaurants on the wharf. *Quick side note, remember this post, with my "clam chowder scavenger hunt..?" .. yup, we ate at one of those :] Anyway, we had an amazing dinner with a booth that over looked the ocean. Once we finished we came back to our hotel, dropped some things off in our room and went to the ballroom to find the party. It was a Venetian Ball put on by a local organization. It turned out to be a lot of fun with a great DJ, a photo-booth, even prizes that were being raffled off just before midnight! {sadly, we didn't win anything}  Then the staff came around with glasses of champagne ready for the big toast at midnight. After we all counted down everyone was cheering, the balloons were dropped from the ceiling as 2012 received a very warm welcome. The rest of the evening was spent dancing, laughing and smiling with those around us. Share some of your NYE stories below in the comment section, I'd love to hear what your evening entailed!

X x

monterey bay aquarium

Hello everyone, I hope you are recovering and getting back into the daily grind, I know I am. :[ It's always so hard to start working again after a little "mini vaca." This weekend we were down in Monterey to enjoy the sunny weather & ring in the new year.

For my birthday Brett gave me tickets for the aquarium because I have always talked about how I wanted to go back and visit since I haven't been there in a long time. We thought this would be the perfect opportunity to use them. We headed down pretty early on Saturday morning in order to ensure we got our full day's experience at the aquarium. We spent the majority of the afternoon just in awe of all the marine life they have. I remembered most of the exhibits, luckily it hasn't changed too much. I'd have to say penguins are one of my favorite animals of all time and just this past year the aquarium has opened up a penguin exhibit! I think I was most excited for the penguins and the jelly fish. After we finished up with all that we could see in the aquarium we headed over to our hotel for check in and to get ready for the new year's eve festivities. More posts to come about new year's eve and how we wanted to start new year's day with total relaxation.

X x

happy new year!

Happy New Year!

May we be grateful for all that 2011 had to offer, for our opportunities - both positive and negative, and may we remember our loved ones who passed on this year and those who left us too soon.

May 2012 be a year full of health, happiness, prosperity, love and peace for you and those closest to you.

"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do.

So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails.
Explore. Dream. Discover. "

                                                                                                     -Mark Twain

recap of 2011 {in photos}

I decided to go through my photo library and pick out some of my favorite pictures starting from January 2011 through to now. That proved to be much more difficult than I thought. I can't believe how much has happened and how much I have done these past twelve months. {3,445 photos to be exact} This year was filled with lots of beach adventures, trips up to Tahoe for snowboarding, going to concerts and comedy shows, seeing old friends in LA and making new friends around home. Watching Brett's little brother go through his last year of high school with prom and graduation especially fun to be a part of. This year was definitely one for learning, trying new things, stepping out of my comfort zone and most importantly learning how to be an adult instead of being a student for the first time in 18 years.

I hope you enjoy my collection of photos and hopefully they aren't too many that you have already seen, I tried to choose different ones that I haven't posted on here, but after all this time it's a little hard to keep track. :]

amazing boston trip

valentine's day dinner

linkin park concert

the classic "hand me the camera" face

the birthday boy

surprise rose on my car one morning

nick's senior prom

nick graduates!

4th of july fireworks

my beautiful birthday flowers

jason aldean conert

gilroy garlic festival

our scotland trip

beach adventure

halloween

X x